IFC secures $85mn Citi facility to boost local currency financing in South Africa

Published: 2026-04-16 06:10:08 ET C

Published on 04/16/2026 at 06:10 am EDT

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has signed an $85mn borrowing facility with Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C), aimed at expanding its capacity to provide local currency financing in South Africa.

IFC is the private-sector financing arm of the World Bank Group. The facility forms part of the Group’s broader push to deepen local capital markets and reduce currency risk for private sector investment in emerging economies.

According to the World Bank, the financing has already supported IFC’s anchor investment in the Cape Water outcome-based bond issued by FirstRand Bank, described as the first outcome bond issued by a commercial bank globally.

Currency volatility remains a key constraint for private sector development across emerging markets, where access to long-term local currency financing is often limited. The facility is designed to expand the availability of such funding while supporting innovative instruments in domestic capital markets.

“Local currency financing and capital markets development in emerging and developing markets are critical priorities for the World Bank Group,” said Jorge Familiar, vice-president and treasurer at the World Bank Group.

“This facility is another example of what our partnerships with the private sector can deliver – from outcome bonds to local currency solutions – in support of long-term finance for job creation.”

The IFC has committed more than $33bn in local currency financing across 71 currencies over the past decade, reflecting its growing focus on reducing exchange rate risk for borrowers.

The new South African rand facility builds on a similar structure established in Kenyan shillings in 2024, with IFC and Citi planning to replicate the model across additional emerging markets.

“This facility deepens our partnership with the World Bank Group,” said Stephanie von Friedeburg, global head of Citi’s public sector group.

“Following our Kenyan shilling transaction, this first South African rand facility reflects a model that can be replicated throughout emerging markets. It adds to the toolkit for DFIs [development finance institutions] and supports local currency financing where it is needed most.”